2012 proved to be a remarkable year for gay celebrities, several of
whom decided to get personal with the public on their own terms.

Anderson Cooper

The
CNN news anchor contended that he'd never hidden his sexuality from
friends, family and colleagues in a e-mail to journalist Andrew Sullivan
in July, who posted it on The Daily Beast with Cooper's
permission. "The fact is, I'm gay, always have been, always will be, and
I couldn't be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud,"
Cooper wrote, adding that by remaining silent, "I have given some the
mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something - something that
makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid. This is distressing
because it is simply not true. I've also been reminded recently that
while as a society we are moving toward greater inclusion and equality
for all people, the tide of history only advances when people make
themselves fully visible."

Jim Parsons

Glaring "Yep, I'm gay" magazine headlines became a thing of the past when TheNew York Times quietly confirmed in May that Parsons was gay. , The revelation was couched in a profile about the Big Bang Theory star's Broadway turn in The Normal Heart, about a gay activist in New York in the '80s. The Times wrote, "The Normal Heart resonated
with him on a few levels: Mr. Parsons is gay and in a 10-year
relationship, and working with an ensemble again onstage was like
nourishment."

Matt Bomer

White Collar's Matt
Bomer simply thanked his longtime partner Simon Halls while receiving a
humanitarian award from the Desert AIDS Project in February. "I never
really endeavored to hide anything," the Magic Mike star later
told E! News. "But there were times I chose not to relegate my history
to the back page of a magazine, which to me is sort of akin to putting
your biography on a bathroom wall." He added, "Equality comes from
treating everybody the same regardless of who they are. I hope the media
and the press catches on to that, because it's time to move out of
1992."

Frank Ocean

Critics caught on early that in his smash debut album Channel Orange, Ocean's
songs referenced being in love with both men and women. Ocean wrote an
open letter acknowledging that at 19 he had fallen in love with a man.
"I don't know what happens now, and that's alright," he wrote. "I don't
have any secrets I need kept anymore...Thanks to my first love, I'm
grateful to you." Celebrities widely praised his bravery, and later,
Ocean told GQ that he had been told he was risking his burgeoning
career by becoming the first openly gay hip-hop artist. "The night I
posted it, I cried like a (expletive) baby," he said, adding, "I hadn't
been happy in so long. I've been sad again since, but it's a totally
different take on sad. There's just some magic in truth and honesty and
openness."